Zelda V. Troiano, 76, of St. Pete Beach, FL, passed away on March 31, 2021, after a short illness. She will be missed immensely by her family, friends and community. Born in Lebanon, PA, Zelda was a graduate of York Suburban High School in York, PA, Millersville University in Millersville, PA, with an undergraduate teaching degree, and the University of South Florida with a master’s degree in education. An avid educator all her life and teacher of Latin, Spanish and French, Zelda taught in high schools in New Jersey, at St. Joseph Hill Academy in Staten Island, NY, and at Largo High School, Largo, FL, and was a guidance counselor for 17 years at Largo.
Zelda, her husband Jim Troiano, and their three daughters moved to St. Pete Beach from Staten Island in 1984. Over the years, she became an integral part of the community, serving for more than 34 years in numerous roles with the United States Coast Guard Auxiliary Flotilla 78. After Zelda retired from Largo High School, she volunteered with the St. Pete Beach Public Library, where she taught countless patrons how to use their iPads and download books onto their Kindles (and so much more). Five years ago, she took a part-time job managing the Events column in Paradise News and became an expert in all the goings-on of the area, much to the delight of her visiting adult children.
Zelda had a passion for travel, starting with a road trip around northern Europe in 1969, followed by many other trips to Europe, Mexico, Alaska and Hawaii with her husband Jim. She passed on the travel bug to her daughters, and they took numerous magical trips together to places including Rome, Tuscany, Munich, London, Paris, Athens, Santorini, Crete, and New Zealand. Zelda and her sister Trina were also known for their cross-country road trips, making good use of their Lifetime National Parks passes while also visiting Canada and nearly every state (only Iowa, Nebraska, and Kansas remained on her list!).
Zelda is survived by her daughters Amy, Elizabeth, and Emily Troiano; her son-in-law Chris Trinacty; her grandchildren Ada and Michael; her sister Trina Strohman; her brother Harry Strohman and many loving family members. Over the past few years, Zelda was involved with local food banks. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in her name to Feeding Tampa Bay.
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